1. Technical Field
Embodiments of the present invention relate to a small-sized camera lens module mounted on the front or rear of the main body of a mobile communication terminal and used in various photographing modes.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, at least one light, thin, short, and small camera lens module is adopted in a mobile communication terminal, such as a tablet PC or smart phone that is generalized with the recent development of a mobile communication technology. In particular, there is a user's high-capacity and high-performance demand for the camera lens module adopted in the mobile communication terminal. Furthermore, the camera lens module is being developed in the direction advantageous for a small size while maintaining its high capacity and high performance.
A small camera lens module adopted in a mobile communication terminal is equipped with an auto-focusing function and a digital zoom function and also equipped with a stabilizer function so that it is faithful to its camera function. In general, a known camera lens module includes a lens, a lens driving unit configured to move the lens in the direction of the optical axis and provide a movable force for focus control, and an image sensor configured to photograph light incident through the lens and convert the photographed light into an image signal. The camera lens module is configured to perform focusing on a subject for photographing by automatically controlling the distance between the lens and the image sensor.
The lens driving unit of the camera lens module that implements auto-focusing may be divided into a voice coil motor (VCM) type using an interaction principle between a magnetic field and an electric field and an encoding type in which the location of the lens is automatically controlled in response to the detection of the sensor. In a method of implementing a focusing function in the VCM type camera lens module, a VCM is chiefly used as a driving source. The VCM includes a magnet configured to generate a magnetic force and a coil supplied with an electric current and moves a lens barrel by a force generated by the interaction between an electric field and a magnetic field. Likewise, the encoding type camera lens module includes a magnet and a coil supplied with an electric current and provides a movable force.
For example, a conventional small-sized auto-focusing camera lens module mounted on a mobile communication terminal is disclosed in “Korean Patent Application No. 2010-106811”, “Korean Patent Application No. 2009-83613”, “Korean Patent Application No. 2012-85890”, and “Korean Patent Application No. 2010-71948.”